﻿Happy May Day SWEET FACES! I am so excited to have this time to sit and share some great thoughts with you about Makeup Business. I get several inbox’s and ﻿﻿emails from artist and those alike who want know some key tips about being a makeup artist. I will share a few thoughts and ideas which will help you along your sweet makeup journey. Enjoy ﻿Let’s Begin:Practice Makes Perfect or Close to it: This is the only way to learn your craft.First, master doing makeup on yourself…you’re a walking advertisement of your services. I learn this more and more every day. When I have on a “SWEET” face I get stopped by people who become clients. Try to venture outside of your comfort zone and do new techniques you’re not used to doing. Next, simply practice on your friends and family. Everyone wants to try makeup… Many are afraid. Try working on models of various ages and ethnicities…believe me, it’s a lot different from doing makeup on yourself. This is where you learn what works and what doesn't. Pay special attention to speeding up your application time as well as your verbal rapport with clients.

Do your Research: There is so much to learn about makeup and skincare. From color theory to skincare, it's more than just slapping some makeup on people. Knowledge is key. Take a trip to your library or book store and check out the amazing beauty books. This is where you can learn the basics. Also utilize the web: some of the most helpful videos are on YouTube. If you're truly trying to learn the technique of applying makeup on others, I highly suggest EnKore Makeup and Goss Makeup Artist - a quick YouTube search will yield several of their videos. Don't forget about blogs! Blogs have great info and links to help you find what you are looking for

Sign Up For Classes: Class instruction is invaluable. Search for schools in your area. MAC and some other large department store brands offer classes if you inquire about them. After a bit of internet research, I was able to locate an airbrush teacher in my area to teach me all about airbrush makeup. I continue to seek out classes to sharpen my skills and learn new techniques.

Build a MU Kit: Building a kit is﻿ very expensive and definitely takes time. To get the most bang for your buck, try buying in palettes. It’s so easy now-a-days to buy makeup artist friendly items via the web. Also, try buying from brands like Mehron, Ben Nye, and Kryolan. These are theatrical makeup companies that offer high quality, pigmented products at a third of the price of department store brands. As a makeup artist you'll need at least two sets of brushes especially if you work with multiple clients

Get business cards: Give some to your friends and family so they can hand them out for you. These are also great for helping getting pro discounts. Every time you have a client, give them a few to hand out to people they know

Build a portfolio: ﻿Start taking pictures of every makeover you do…whether it’s your friend or an a client. I love taking before and after pictures because this is what my everyday client wants to see. For a professional portfolio that you’d show to an agency, you don’t typically have before and after pictures. Partner with a photographer…a lot of sites like www.modelmayhem.com are great places to do TFP work. Do the makeup on models and you’ll get pictures in exchange…this will help to build your portfolio. Keep in mind that pictures in your portfolio should be clear, have good lighting and show off the makeup.﻿

Do a website: For aspiring artists, a blog is a great way to start out. It's free and easy to use and you can show pictures and contact information. Use an online photo service like Flickr to start housing your online portfolio. Also try weebly.com for a free website. Use Godaddy.com to purchase your domain name and use a professional email address. Also get a 1 800 number. You will thank me later. Client and possible employers will blow your personal cell phone up. Using a virtual phone number will allow you to be professional as well as monitor your message

Apply for discounts: This will help build your kit. Every major cosmetics company offers one. The information is usually listed on their website under "pro discount". For information on specific discounts, do a search at http://www.specktra.net./

Advertise: Post your services on Cragislist. It’s FRE 99 LOLWork with other people in the industry like photographers, wedding planners and see if they can advertise your services on their web pages. Leave your business cards at restaurants and tack them to bulletin boards. Lastly, word of mouth is the best advertisement

Grooming: Always look the part. Go clean, made up and professional at your bookings. You are a walking advertisement for your business. No one wants services by someone with badly done makeup or jacked up skin. I like to wear all black and a black apron to my gigs so that they know that I’m the makeup artist. Don’t smack gum with clients…mints are better. Make sure your kit also looks clean and is sanitized as well. Make sure you are fully hydrated. Nothing worse than doing makeup for a wedding party of 8 and you faint because you were dehydrated...LOL

Pricing: Check with artists in your area...prices vary depending on where you live. As a new artist, don't charge too much or too little. It's definitely important to price also according to your experience level. Don't be afraid to charge extra for special services like lashes, brow work, and airbrushing. Over time, as my experience and kit grew, my prices also slightly increased. Also, don’t feel bad when you have to tell someone NO. Get familiar with this word. It will save you a lot of time and money. You are in business to make money. As we reviewed, it is not cheap to build a MU Kit. Your clients will do two things: PAY YOU or NOT PAY. You will get phone calls and emails requesting your services and when you inquire about budgets…. They will often times tell you there is no BUDGET. You kindly thank and decline the offer

Questions: There's so much to learn about the business. Remember ONE thing. You are IN BUSINESS! Don’t allow people to discredit your business. Maintain professional relationships. Networking is key. If you don’t know… ASK. If you can’t find someone who will answer your question… (because you will find out real quick that some MUA are not willing to help you)… look it up. Google it...a lot of times people ask me for advice on basic questions which are easily answered by a quick internet search to find that many other blogs or sites have posts on it. As an aspiring artist, its important to be fully vested as with anything. Read your blogs daily and research to obtain your own knowledge. It's more fulfilling and beneficial this way because you learn a lot more in the process. I'm always open and willing to answer my readers' questions, but I would definitely suggest trying to find your own answer first...be your own teacher.

Well SWEET Faces… I hope you have enjoyed this moment with me. I hope to bring you more blogs filled with great information and other goodies to help you along the way. I think we are getting ready to do a 30 day challenge doing one face and look per day. So look out for that. Email us at info@mysweetskin.com or give us a call at 1.888.631.4666 one of our pro team members would love to hear from you. If you find this blog helpful. We want to hear from you. We love to know what our readers are saying. Please also feel free to post questions and comments.